The South Korean had seen his 2022/23 campaign interrupted by injury, but having recovered in time to fire his country into the knockout stage of the World Cup in Qatar, Hwang is confident that his second-half strike will set the wheels in motion for a more productive 2023 in front of goal.
On finding the net in gold and black
“We were playing well even before I scored. I simply came on and was able to provide a little bit of help.
“In that very moment, I actually thought it was my shot that directly resulted in a goal, but after seeing it again, it took a deflection off of a defender, and hit me somewhere in my leg before going in. I watched it again and I’m just happy to score.
“Many people have been waiting for my goal. I was waiting eagerly to score a goal as well. I was happy to have a moment to give many fans a reason to celebrate. It’s also great that we were able to play well.”
On believing the goal would come
“Some may think that I’d get anxious, obviously because I haven’t scored for a long time, but I think everyone also knows that in moments like this, it’s always better to be calm and not try to force things.
“I focused more on my play in general. I believed that as long as I do that, I’ll have chances to score. The goal came quite late, but to score a goal to start the year is exciting.
“I want to continue to make the fans happy with my goals now.”
On improving under Lopetegui
“The manager gives us very detailed instructions on where and how to press opponents, so the players are preparing for different moments in games quite well. It was the same approach today.”
Hwang ➡️ Cunha ➡️ Hwang ➡️ ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/v1WB330pc5
— Wolves (@Wolves) January 8, 2023
On Toti’s disallowed goal
“We saw the play again on video and it didn’t seem offside to us. I’m so, so disappointed. Even the Salah goal, it was definitely offside.
“To see decisions like these even with VAR is disappointing, but we still played very well and it’s important that so many of us grew stronger in our confidence.
“In the next game, we can continue to be confident and play well.”
